The Merchant of Venice

In his bold, brusque re-imagining of Shakespeare's long-controversial farce, screenwriter and director Michael Radford (1984, Il Postino) and actor Al Pacino have successfully reinvented Shylock--the insensitive, arguably anti-Semitic caricature of the greedy, vengeful Jewish creditor--as a tragic and more central figure, whose demand for a literal pound of flesh as payment for a defaulted loan is motivated by indignation for his treatment at the hands of bigoted gentiles. And thus, The Merchant of Venice here becomes a drama thick with implications about the dangers of religious power in society. Unfortunately, Radford's creativity with the Bard's narrative doesn't extend to renovating the weightless, transparently contrived primary plot concerning Bassanio (Joseph Fiennes), a young man who wishes to woo a beautiful heiress but fears he hasn't the wealth to make the proper impression--romantic aspirations that lead a dear friend (Jeremy Irons) to secure the sinister, high-risk loan from Shylock on Bassanio's behalf. Radford's more serious adaptation exposes these characters for the charlatans, hypocrites, and fools they are while still handing them Shakespeare's simplistic happy ending. But this gutsy and distinctive picture is still worth seeing, even if it's just to be a part of the debate it will surely stir among Shakespeareans. A strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentary by director Michael Radford and costar Lynn Collins, a 30-minute “making-of” featurette, a 20-page downloadable teacher's guide, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a challenging adaptation of the Bard.] (R. Blackwelder)